Ep. 7 Monty Waldin interviews Maria Sabrina Tedeschi of Cantine Tedeschi | Discover Italian Regions: Veneto

Italian wine podcast. Chinching with Italian wine people. My name is Monte Warden. I'm with Maria Sabrina Tedeschi. Yes. From the Tedeschi wine company in Val Pollicello in Northern Italy. Welcome. Thank you. Your company was founded in sixteen thirties. Is that right? What's your family history like? Was it one of peace or one of Drive. My family is, in the wine business for, for many, many years. Of course, a business was different than, than today. But, my grandfather own a wine bar Osteria, the actual, the present, one bar, and that we, he was a user to sell wine suggesting Verona area. For sure was my father in, sixty years, seventy years, it changed completely. The style of the family introduced the philosophy of the family. He started to support the wines around the world. And today, we are a still a family business because, I manage the winery with my brother Ricardo is the winemaker. I share with him at the expert sales, and my sister, she's in charge of Italian sales. We are not a big producer in terms of the quantity, because we produce five million bottles per year. So for, Veronica area, we are medium size. But we, I think, we are one of the point of referring for Republic. And, I am proud, because my father was one of the four guy in valpolicella, introduce the style of a crew, the single vinai. My grandparents, bought the Montei Omi, our single vinai Ara Marona today in nineteen eighteen, and they started to put to the name of the Vigna since nineteen sixty four. So we celebrated the fifty anniversary a few years ago. And, we are, a steel producer with the same style. Of course, it's a different because Also, the production of a maroona has a change a little bit in the in the in the time in the years. Of course, this history is a fundamental because the heritage is very important. But we have entered my brother. I haven't as introduced new technologies. And, we take we take care more and more in the quality of wines. Okay. Amaroni's become very, very popular, almost too popular. Do you think there's a risk that it will sort of, burn out that will just get saturated with the amarone. Oh, yes. The risk is quite high. Today, I just remember some figures, in nineteen ninety years, we in the region. We produce two million bottles of amarone. And today we produce a sixteen, nineteen million bottles. Of course, so we think we can protect the image of a moroni. If we take care of the quality character of a moroni, grapes of Amerone, the Corvina, the Corvina, the Rontinela, local grape varieties, for a Marone, must select just in the his. And for us, we did some investments, in the vineyards in the years. Just in the his, because a Marone must be producer just from there. So basically, what you're saying is, I mean, work in the hills is much harder and more expensive than working on the plane. I mean, how does that pay off for you economically? You're doing all this extra work. And, how do you how do you justify that? Of course, cost is higher, but the quality, the complexity of the wines is a totally different because of the soil, because of the climate. We have a difference in temperature between night and day. We have a more ventilation. So more flavors, more aromas, more structure, more volume of wines, and it is a maroona. What did you do before you started working on the family estate? I was a teacher after the degree in a food technologist. I taught a technologist inology and microbiology in a school. And then in two thousand, I decided to be back in the family business, and, I am still, of course, and my future is my family business. What do you do when you're on when you're not working? You go on holiday? Can you can you switch off from wine? Having such responsibility? Or is it just impossible to get away from the cell phone ringing? I work a lot. So I start in the morning and I finish very late, in the in the night. But of course, I try to take a time also for my family. I have two daughters. In our family, there are seven children. We hope for the future of the family business. So I take her to to them and I I try to take time also, for me, but not a lot, unfortunately. We open just, in the summer holidays. What do you what's your favorite wine for dinner? If you're not allowed to drink your own wine or any wine from Veneto or even any wine from Italy. What are you gonna choose? I I like a lot. There are many good, Italian and, friend wines. I like a lot, burgundy, wines. I added a chance in the past to have erasmus experience with the university in, burgundy for six months. And the problem is it, it is the reason. But, a second reason, I think the burgundy wines are, similar or white watercolor wines are more similar for the elegance of burgundy wines. Okay. And also they've got they've been like you were saying at all about them. They demarcated their venue. Every plot has its own taste and that's what you're trying to replicate in your, in your, on a very little yard every little spot of, has its own name and it has its own character. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Because, we did some research of a zoning and characterization of our soil. And so we recognize a different potential of our our land. We produce a different wines and different crew not only for amarone, but also for Vipolicello. And, it is the philosophy. My father introduced her, and, we still keep it today. Who's gonna be the next generation? Would you would all of you be disappointed if, the next generation of all these children coming through and said, how we don't wanna make wine? We wanna go off and be, I don't know, racing drivers or airline pilots. Would that be a tremendous blow? Would you think they're actually gonna follow you in in full? I think, we have, me and my brother and my sister, we have, inherited the patient from, our parents. Probably, they are, in irritating, the same from us, but we don't know. What are we like they have to study. They have to have enough knowledge for, and the experience, outside the, our business. And then, if they like, they come back, we open somebody because a lot of our generation of a tadeske family are involved in the wine business. So we open somebody of them, they have the same patient that we have today. Okay. Finally, what's your what's your next challenge? Improve the quality and improve the image of the of our lender. Not a tiddiske only tiddiske wines, but are all the region. Now we have to work for improve and for learn all together, what is the best for our lender? Because, is, it is a, regards we can give to the next generation. We have to protect what the past generation did for Valicella and that they did a lot. When I was a children, I remember my father was back from different business trip and many customers asked her to they say, I like your wines, but please take off the name of a Balicella and he will always say Vicella is my land. I have to keep Valicella on the label. And, with other producer of the region, they built the image of a Balicella, and we have to protect her today for the future as well. We wish you luck with that. Thank you very much indeed. Thank you. Thank you very much. Follow us, Italian wine podcast on Facebook.